This. Not even in the refrigerated bag.
One more thing for the list, as it relates to a pet peeve of mine.
Just because everything will fit into one bag, doesn’t mean it should all be put there. Baggers and cashiers almost always do this by default. As allowed by the other constraints, the weight should ideally be distributed into at least two or three bags as needed to provide for a reasonably balanced load, assuming that you’re using both hands and also that you are walking any farther than from your driveway to the kitchen. It’s not hard to carry two ten pound bags, one in either hand. But many people would find it uncomfortable to carry fifteen pounds on one side and five on the other.
Unfortunately nearly all reusable bags suck these days–cheaply made of plastic and anything but ergonomic for walkers. How I long for the bags of yesteryear–the early 1990s to be exact. They were a bit expensive, but the had real shoulder straps that were comfortable with heavy loads, and they had real handles that weren’t so long that the bags sometimes scraped on the ground as you walked.
One of my jobs currently is as a cashier at Meijer. We have no baggers, cashiers bag. My cardinal rule is bag as if I’m bagging for myself unless the customer requests otherwise.
Pet peeves:
[ul]
[li]Customers who pull the carousel around and remove the bag after I’ve put one item in it[/li]Bonus: when those same customers complain that I’m using too many bags
[li]Customers who act like their bagging idiosyncrasies are the universal norm, and act like my bagging style (which probably makes more sense than theirs) is eyerollingly stupid[/li]Bonus: when they sigh and rebag everything instead of just telling me how they want it
[li]Customers with a cold-bag fetish. Um, unless it’s 105F outside and you’re 3 hours from home, cold bags are more trouble than they’re worth. Get them home, get them in the fridge. [/li]Bonus: when they INSIST that all the cold stuff be cold bagged . . . and it’s 27F outside. I’m like, we should be bagging the produce to keep it from freezing sweetheart.
[li]Customers who condescendingly tell me to do what I’m going to do anyway. Yes, I know to double bag leaky meat and cut fruit. Yes I know not to put the hot chicken with the ice cream. Yes I know to double bag heavy things with corners. No I’m not going to put the can of tomatoes with the potato chips.[/li][/ul]
My priorities, roughly in order:
[ul]Items must be compatible: crushables together, no toxics with food, no hot with cold; the obvious. If someone is buying bread, a 2ltr of soda, and Raid, they get three bags.
[li]Weight must be reasonable and reasonably distributed.[/li][li]One glass item per bag, otherwise even pickle jars go in wine bags.[/li][li]Whatever the customer requests, no matter how retardedd.[/li][/ul]
raw meats go into a plastic bag which is then sealed to prevent deadly meat juice from contaminating other food.
Meats that leak into the reusable bag can leave places for bacteria such as e. coli and other nasties to breed and then they end up on your raw foods. There’s differing opinion as to how big the risk of cross contamination really is, but it is fairly easy to mitigate.
Washing the bags after each use will generally eliminate the threat and you can further reduce the risk of cross-contamination by not using the same bag for meat as you do for vegetables and other foods to be eaten raw.
While food poisoning is no laughing matter, “deadly meat juice” has made me smile.
The shops here in Scotland have to charge 5p per bag they use. I have some large (2’ x 2’ x 18") recycling bags made of a plastic version of canvas I use instead. I also have a stock of ordinary plastic bags, so if I forget my normal bags, I can use them instead, being sure to use bags from ASDA in Sainsburys and vice versa.
Me too - I use the sturdy rectangular canvas/plastic bags like this. They can be filled to the brim with heavy/solid stuff such as cans and jars, allowing a lot more freedom in the packing regime.
So I put all the heavy/incompressible stuff (cans, bottles, jars, bagged pasta, root veg) on the belt first and pack this into the bags that will go into the bottom of the trolley first (then back at the car, these bags go in the car first, with the lighter/crushable stuff on top - I have a very small car, so the way I have to pack it for the journey home is a factor in the equation.
I start with that premise, but have learned not to hold to it too strictly. I usually ask before I even start if they want heavy stuff double-bagged or not. Obviously frail people get more lightly loaded bags, and the disabled I ask upfront if they need assistance unloading their cart, getting their stuff into the car (I call early for someone to come for that because it always takes a bit), or have any bagging requests.
Oh, gosh, yes - and there are two variations on that: either young children who are THRILLED to make the bagging carousel go round and round (and can easily wind up getting whacked in the head with one of the prongs that hold the bags, or otherwise finding mayhem), or the adults who zip the bag around before you have a chance to put more than one item in it and stand a good chance of whacking you, the cashier, with one of those bag-holding prongs (had a nasty bruise on my hip once from that).
Bonus: when, after encountering a fleshy obstacle to turning said bagging carousel the offender keeps pushing harder thereby adding additional injury to the insult.
Double bonus: people who refuse to answer any inquiries as to their preferences (like double bag heavy stuff or not), answer every “good morning” with a snarl, angrily repack or double-bag stuff, then go complain to management about how rude/incompetent you are
I mean, really, if you’re having a bad day I can understand. If you want me to just shut up and check/bag just say you’re having a bad day, or don’t feel like chatting or that you’d like to get through things quickly and I’ll do it. I’m highly motivated to accommodate your requests not only because I’m a nice person but because making you as happy as possible makes my day better.